Speed, Automation, Collaboration: 2018 3D Printing Trends

Posted Date 01/08/18

Faster printers, more automation, and collaboration are among the key trends that 3D printing industry insiders expect to see this year, along with more new materials and more new entrants into the field. That’s according to a survey among 3D printing executives conducted by 3D Printing Industry.

While opinions on the above seem largely consensus, there is some divergence on low-end, low-cost 3D printers. Some industry insiders expect these to gain more ground this year, while others are of the opinion that high-end, professional printers will continue to dominate the market. Naturally, both sides have a vested interest to see their expectations materialize.

One interesting outtake from the survey is metal 3D printing. While this topic has been making a lot of headlines this year, it seems that the prevailing opinion, even among metal 3D printing executives, is that this segment of the industry is still at an early stage of development and this year won’t see a lot of major breakthroughs. Metal 3D printing is still at the testing stage, these insiders note, and it will be a while before it enters the mainstream.

In materials, there will be more new ones hitting the market in 2018 – a development that was only to be expected as the evolution of the 3D printing industry follows more or less the same curve as 2D printing, only faster. 3D printing materials are already an important revenue stream for sector players, so it would make sense to put more efforts into expanding the offering.